If you are serious about growing you need to check out the Pulse one (or Pulse Pro if you are supplementing CO2). The Pulse system gives you:
- Humidity Alerts
- Temperature Alerts
- VPD monitoring
- Light Alerts
- CO2 Monitoring (Pro Model only)
- Custom Clone/Veg/Flower/Dry Profiles
In addition to all this it comes with a sleek IOS/Android/Web platform that brings everything together.
Pulse recommended profiles for DWC:
Vegetative
- VPD 1.2
- 18/6 light cycle
Veg Day:
- Light 40 – 100%
- Temp 65-78 F
- Humidity 40 – 80%
Veg Night:
- Light 0 – 10%
- Temp 60-67F
- Humidity 40 – 80 %
Flower
- VPD 1.5
- 12/12 light cycle
Flower Day:
- Light 80 – 100%
- Temp 65-78F
- Humidity 40 – 70 %
Flower Night:
- Light 0 – 1%
- Temp 50 – 66
- Humidity 40 – 70%
You will notice that I run my nighttime temperatures fairly cold. I achieve this by running a sealed room with a window AC unit. This is one of the little known secrets of DWC. No need to chill your water when you can just chill the entire room down during the night cycle. I paid ~$350 for a 8000-btu Smart AC which allows me to setup custom cooling schedules. I set the AC to 78 to 85F during the day and ~67F during the night cycle.
Below is a sample screenshot of one of the templates I have setup. The only feature I have requested from the team is a delay for the alerts, to allow my room a bit of time (e.g. 30 min) to come down/up to temp after a switch from day to night or vice versa. They have assured me they are working on it as of Oct 2021.
Pulse Grow Smart Alerts
Among my favourite features are the smart alerts. I have a variety of devices in my room for environmental control. This includes humidifier, dehumidifier, CO2 solenoid controller, Toshiba AC, Smart Plugs for light timers and an exhaust fan that runs for a couple of minutes at the end of every day cycle. This is a lot of different monitors and having the Pulse monitoring system is instrumental for making sure nothing goes out of sync. Since purchasing the pulse pro unit it has alerted me of:
- High humidity alert let me know there was a water leak in my veg room (caused by an auto-top off DIY humidifier that had gotten knocked over)
- High Night-Time Light alert let me know that my Window AC had a light leak
- CO2 alerts showed upwards of 2500ppm in a 9’x9 room after I brewed 25 gallons of beer for a friends wedding (see beer co2 supplementation article)
Light leak through my Window AC that the Pulse alerted me to.
Disadvantages of the Pulse Grow
I have found the sensors to be very accurate when compared with other devices. The app works great and isn’t glitchy in any way. My only complaint is that the VPD alerts are behind a subscription based paywall. When compared with the SensorPush System this is where they’ve got them beat. That being said, SensorPush does not have veg/flower profiles, light monitoring, CO2 monitoring or a multi platform device that brings everything together. I have found that the free platform will be fine for the majority of users. If you really need the pro features you are likely in the industry and can afford to expense the cost.
The picture above shows the pinpoint accuracy of the Pulse Pro. When entering the grow room both the ambient light and CO2 spike from my breathing are visible. Please do not crucify me for entering during the night cycle. This is when I still had my room at 18/6 for veg.
Overall there are few cons to this system. The team cares and they’ve built a platform that works.
Pulse One vs Pulse Pro
The difference between the two is easy. Pulse Pro has CO2 monitoring while the Pulse One does not. I recommend new growers start the with the Pulse One.
If you choose to upgrade to CO2 supplementation (which if you stay in this hobby long enough you likely will) you can always upgrade to the Pule Pro and use the Pulse One for your veg room.
Pulse Pro Discount Code
As part of the affiliate team that gives product feedback I am happy to offer my followers a discount on the unit. For $10/$25 off the One/Pro use code GROWDOCTOR. If you have any questions about using the device shoot them a DM on their instagram. They are very quick to reply. If not send me a message and I am happy to try and help out as well.
Monitoring the metrics that the Pulse dashboard gives is key to mastering your environment and becoming a professional grower.
Happy growing!
